History may never repeat itself exactly, but you wouldn't know that from the spate of recent articles comparing our current economic plight to the worst economic contraction since the Plague.
Unless the boss can pull something out of thin air and borrow a lot of money by Friday, we'll have to go into bankruptcy and I'll have to look for other work.
When a long marriage isn't as good as it could be, the temptation can be to bail out or to sweep the issues under the carpet and settle for the status quo.
Millions of Britons are entangled in means-tested tax credits, housing benefits and entitlements for the jobless that can make it unprofitable to work.
It's tempting to lie, but if a new employer ever asked you to use any of those fake skills, like producing a video or speaking Danish, you're suddenly in very hot water.
The partial substitution of national debt with European bonds might reduce the marginal debt-service cost for distressed countries while they are being issued.